Tired of the Monkeys Stealing Their Idea, the Cardinals Strike Back!

Risking the wrath of simians around the world, the cardinals enlisted the aid of a sympathetic sculptor to capture them in the pose too long miscredited to a menage of manky monkeys! At long last the true originators have been revealed. Rumor has not yet been substantiated that the accompanying catchphrase was also mangled by the monkeys' machinations and that the final word was originally "weevil".

Another rumor can be substantiated, however: the Head Gardener can verify that the blogger from this corner of Katy celebrates her first blogiversary today. My first post was written for my blog on the Houston Chronicle's website on December 29th, 2007. It's been an eventful year in this blogger's life, with too many of those events unhappily memorable ones. But along with the sadness that has been so much a part of this year, there have been many happily eventful moments, more than a few of which resulted from my becoming a blogger. By far the most memorable of those events was the Garden Bloggers' Spring Fling, held in Austin April 4th & 5th. Although I'd only been blogging for a few months, and knew very little of other blogs and the whole blogging process, any hesitation I felt about joining in soon vanished. Being amongst fellow gardeners and writers was an experience I look forward to repeating in May of 2009, when garden bloggers assemble in Chicago for the 2nd Annual Spring Fling.

I said back in October that my goal for my second year of blogging was to post more frequently, even if many of those posts were briefer. I'll see how that goes ... what I love most about the blogs I read is how clearly each person's voice shines through and how well you come to know them through their blog. Staying true to MY voice may mean I continue on the rather rambling journey which blogging has been for me this past year. Or perhaps it will be a different journey entirely, given that much of this year has been colored by my grief over the loss of my beloved friend and gardening compadre Amy. Wherever it takes me, I look forward to this journey, to the company of fellow gardeners and bloggers I've already met and come to know, and to those I'll meet along the way. My life is richer for it all.